Isotropic-nematic transition of self-propelled rods in three dimensions

Bott, Matthias Christian; Winterhalter, F.; Marechal, Matthieu; Sharma, Abhinav; Brader, Joseph M.; Wittmann, René

doi:10.1103/PhysRevE.98.012601

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Isotropic-nematic transition of self-propelled rods in three dimensions

Bott, Matthias Christian Soft Matter Theory, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
Winterhalter, F. Institut für Theoretische Physik, Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany
Marechal, Matthieu Institut für Theoretische Physik, Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany
Sharma, Abhinav Leibniz-Institut für Polymerforschung Dresden, Germany
Brader, Joseph M. Soft Matter Theory, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
Wittmann, René Soft Matter Theory, University of Fribourg, Switzerland

09.07.2018

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Physical Review E. - 2018, vol. 98, no. 1, p. 012601

English Using overdamped Brownian dynamics simulations we investigate the isotropic- nematic (IN) transition of self-propelled rods in three spatial dimensions. For two well- known model systems (Gay-Berne potential and hard spherocylinders) we find that turning on activity moves to higher densities the phase boundary separating an isotropic phase from a (nonpolar) nematic phase. This active IN phase boundary is distinct from the boundary between isotropic and polar-cluster states previously reported in two-dimensional simulation studies and, unlike the latter, is not sensitive to the system size. We thus identify a generic feature of anisotropic active particles in three dimensions.

Faculty

Faculté des sciences et de médecine

Department

Département de Physique

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